


Time Travel’s A Bitch: A Cyberpunk 2077 x Cyberpunk 2020 Story

by Hadrian_Kallig2077



Category: Cyberpunk & Cyberpunk 2020 (Roleplaying Games), Cyberpunk 2077 (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Time Travel, F/M, Reincarnation, Time Travel Fix-It
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-12
Updated: 2021-01-24
Packaged: 2021-03-16 08:40:39
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 8,254
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28703805
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hadrian_Kallig2077/pseuds/Hadrian_Kallig2077
Summary: Johnny lost everything. His legacy, his friends, and Rogue. There was nothing left for him in 2077. With that, the choice to give V’s body back was pretty obvious. Johnny wasn’t sure what awaited him once he crossed the bridge, but time travel wasn’t one of the things he considered. Now, he finds himself with the opportunity to right his wrongs. However, even with his rage at Arasaka cooled, there are some things you can’t escape from. And what’s this rumor about the young Michiko Arasaka and her partner in the Danger Girl Detective Agency?
Relationships: Michiko Arasaka/Male V, Rogue Amendiares/Johnny Silverhand
Comments: 10
Kudos: 30





	1. New Beginnings

**Author's Note:**

> So, I had this random thought, about what would happen if Johnny ended up back in the past, and after that, it wouldn't let me go. It kept snowballing, until at last, I came up with this. Fair warning, before this, I was more of a One Shot kinda guy, so this is pretty much my first big work. Also, since I have a bunch of other ideas running around in my head, this might be infrequently updated. Final note, I'm pretty well versed in Cyberpunk 2077, but not so much in Cyberpunk 2020. I'm using the wiki to help me out here (which is how I came across the Michiko Arasaka entry), but there might be gaps, or some stuff I got wrong. With that said, enjoy the prologue of this story!

“Seeing as how I’m doomed to die, we stick to the plan I gave you - I leave, you stay. Keys to my body are yours.”

Johnny should’ve known V would do this. The poor kid cared too much. He’d blamed himself for every friend that died on him, and now Johnny was probably gonna die too, for good. At least this way, V would be able to save his friend.

Too bad. Johnny had come this far to save V. Rogue had even died for this. He wasn’t gonna stop now.

“No. It’s gonna be me.”

V jumped up. “You lying sack of shit!” he growled, the rage clear in his voice.

Johnny started walking across the bridge, but V popped up in front of him.

“Are you fucking kidding me?!” he shouted, pushing Johnny away. Johnny walked around him. He wasn’t gonna change his mind on this, not now.

V kicked him.

“There are no options, you two - faced sack of shit! I’m out, you’re in! That’s the deal!” He started beating Johnny, doing everything in his power to change Johnny’s mind.

It didn’t

“Ok, easy...Think too big of a dose of Silverhand wound up in my blood. Need to chill.” V took a breath.

“Listen, Johnny. You’re a dickhead, in a big way, and sure, there are plenty of others out there that’re more deserving of life, but even so, I’d never wish you dead.”

Johnny continued. It was hard, but he had to do this. For V, and for himself. He couldn’t see another friend die, not for a bastard like him.

V popped up one final time, turning Johnny around forcibly

“Just promise me one thing, asshole.” V said. He sounded broken, almost on the verge of tears

“You won’t forget me.”

Johnny smiled. “I won’t, I promise you that. Goodbye, V. Never stop fighting.”

It was over. Johnny crossed the bridge to save his friend. V would live. It would only be for a short time, but he would live. The light became blinding…

And he found himself in a club. It had been a long time, but he could remember this like it was yesterday. It shouldn’t be possible, though.

“A-Atlantis?”

“Johnny! Johnny! What’s wrong! Shit! Someone get him some water or something!”

It shouldn’t be possible. She **died**. He saw her die. Yet here she was, looking exactly like she did back in 2008.

“Rogue?”

**Meanwhile, half a world away, in India**

“Push, Didi! You can do this! Come on!”

The woman screamed, and then she heard it.

A cry. The cry of a newborn baby.

“You did it! You did it, oh bhagwanji, thank you. If only your husband was still with us to see this.”

The woman held the child in her arms.

The nurse went forward, a smile on her face. “Congratulations, Miss Matthai. It’s a beautiful boy. What will you name him?”

The woman held the child close to her, tearing up at the sight of her child.

“Viraj. Viraj Matthai”

The brother of the woman smiled, an Arasaka pin clear on his chest. “Welcome to the world, V!”


	2. Realization and Reincarnation is Hard

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Johnny tries to make sense of everything. Meanwhile, Baby! V has just been born and is already not having a good time.

For Rogue, it had just been another day of hanging out with the pain in the ass known as Johnny Silverhand. He was still hung up about Samurai having disbanded, and had started coming to Atlantis far more often. She didn’t want to say it out loud, but Rogue liked the fact that out of all the places he could’ve gone, Johnny had decided to crash in her club. Things were going...ok, for the most part, at least where Johnny Silverhand, the arrogant asshole he was, was concerned.

Then, something happened. The glass that Johnny was holding dropped from his hand, his prosthetic arm started moving strangely, almost glitching out.

And then Johnny collapsed.

Rogue panicked. It wouldn’t look good for her club if Johnny Fucking Silverhand died of a stroke or some shit smack dab in her club.

“Johnny! Johnny! What’s wrong! Shit! Someone get him some water or something!”

Thankfully, Johnny opened his eyes right then, seemingly trying to adjust to the harsh lights of the club.

“A-Atlantis?” he croaked, almost in disbelief, then his eyes popped, almost like he’d seen a ghost.

“Rogue?”

Rogue picked Johnny up from the couch. “Hang on, Johnny, let’s get you some fresh air.”

Johnny chuckled “Fresh air, in Night City?”

“Don’t get smart with me, Silverhand, or next time I’ll leave you on the floor.”

Rogue pushed through the back exit of the club, in a back alley where the dumpsters were. Johnny waved her off as he sat down against the wall.

“Do you need water, Johnny? You don’t look so good.”

“I’ll….I’ll be fine, Rogue. Just... I wanna know, what’s today’s date?”

“Today’s date? What the hell for?”

Johnny looked up to her, almost pleading.

“I just need to know. I’m….I’m feeling outta sorts, alright? It’ll help me feel better, at least”

Rogue shook her head. “Ok, ok. Just promise me you’ll at least get yourself checked out, this could be serious. Anyways, today’s date is July 5th, 2008”

**POV Switch**

_ 2008 _

69 (heh) years before he met V and realized everything he’d fought for had been for nothing.

46 years before V would even be born to an Arasaka family in India

15 years before he’d lose his life trying to take down Arasaka

13 years before the beginning of the Fourth Corporate War

5 years before Alt would lose her body through Soulkiller because of him

_ And 1 year before you and Rogue started dating _ . His brain chipped in, rather unhelpfully. Goddammit.

Johnny didn’t know what to think. Was this all an illusion the Blackwall had conjured up? Was this all just a fake prison so that Johnny didn’t go insane? How was this even possible, if it was real?

As Johnny was ruminating on his unique situation, Rogue grabbed his right arm. “Johnny, are you really alright? You look pretty spooked. Maybe I should get a Ripperdoc to check you out.”

For a moment, Johnny took in everything that was happening. The scent of the chooh2 exhaust lingering in the air, the lights blaring from Atlantis, the sounds of Night City traffic over in the distance, and the feeling of Rogue’s hand on his flesh and blood arm.

At that moment, Johnny decided he didn’t care, whether or not this was all an illusion. He didn’t care how this was possible. All he cared about was that he now had the chance to right his wrongs, to save the people he failed to save before, and to make something better out of the mess that had been his life. He clasped Rogue’s hand with his metal one. He could see the faint tinge of red on her cheeks in that moment.

“I’m fine, Rogue. Everything’s gonna be ok”

And for the first time in what felt like forever, Johnny smiled.

**Kolkata, India (July 5th, 2008)**

The baby was sleeping soundly with his mother, friends and family surrounding the room like moths to a flame.

“Oh, he’s so gublu! I wish we could squeeze those tiny cheeks, hahahaha!”

“That’s a fine boy she has there. He looks very healthy”

“I can’t believe it, I’m a Masho, now! Let me say, for the record, I get to spoil him first!”

“Hey, hey! You can’t do that! I’m his Mashi, and I’m older than you! I get to have that privilege first!”

“I can’t wait to see our little V running around when he begins his Annaprashan, Oh, the videos are going to be amazing!”

As the large corporate family bickered and argued loudly with each other, the mother and the baby continued to rest. The mother, exhausted after her labor, continued to rest peacefully. The baby, on the other hand, squirmed rather fitfully. Images and sounds it could not hope to understand running through its head.

_ Deal...devil… _

_ Dexter…. _

_ Major leagues...Happy...Jackie… _

_ Pull…..bullet _

_ What….put… _

_ Grave... _

_ Kill… _


	3. Putting Life Back Together

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Johnny, having grown up and learning a few important lessons from V, does his best to take control of his life, and take responsibility.

After the little incident at Atlantis, Johnny decided that, to start with, he’d get in touch with Kerry. Of all the things he had missed, playing gigs with Samurai had been pretty much on the top of that list. The only time he’d been able to alleviate the hole left in his heart from the lack of music was…

_“You sure you’re ok with this, V?” Johnny asked. At the time, Johnny thought it was a rather innocent request. However, now, with V coughing blood and holding the pill in his hands, did Johnny start realizing that this may not have been the best idea._

_V shook his head._

_“Well, too late to back out now. Heh. You know, I used to play the guitar a little bit when I was in middle school. It’s a damn shame I had to give up on it by the time I hit high school. Always wondered if I’d ever make it as a Rockerboy.”_

_Johnny chuckled. “No fuckin way. Your suit fetish would’ve destroyed your credibility faster than any busted chops or broken strings ever could have.”_

_“Ah, fuck you, Johnny. At least I have taste. I swear, the second this little concert of yours is over, I’m throwing this outfit of yours into a fire..”_

_V never carried out that threat._

Johnny shook his head. The kid would be alright, wherever he ended up next. V wasn’t even born yet. Hell, his father might not even be born yet either. While Johnny wanted to focus on the future, he didn’t want to head that far into it. He picked up the phone and rang Kerry.

After a few moments, Kerry picked up.

“Johnny? What the hel-Where have you been?!” Kerry exclaimed. Johnny winced. He had a feeling he _might_ not have told Kerry where he went. Shit, he hoped Kerry wasn’t too angry to hear him out.

“I’m alright Kerry. Sorry, I just needed some time to...you know...process everything. About what happened to Samurai and all that.”

Kerry nodded, his anger being replaced with understanding. “It’s alright, Johnny. I know how much the band meant to you. I’ve had difficulty dealing with it too, you know.”

Johnny nodded. “I know, Kerry. It sucks. But...listen, just hear me out, I have an idea.”

Kerry leaned forward. “Johnny, what the hell are you up to now?”

Johnny sighed. Last time around, he and Kerry had decided to go on their own paths. Both used their previous fame and star power to go solo, but they often teamed together. Despite the freedom and cash that came with going Solo, Johnny still missed the old days. He always looked forward to a time when he and Kerry would partner up together for one gig.

So this time, maybe he could play his cards well. He hoped Kerry would be willing to listen to him.

“Kerry, just out of curiosity, what are you gonna do now?”

Kerry shrugged. “I dunno, Johnny. Probably go solo, why?”

“Listen, I just had an idea. How about, instead of going our own separate ways, we do our own little gig together. No Nancy, no Denny, no Henry, just us and three others, one on the keyboard, one on the drums, and one on the bass.”

Kerry scowled. “Wait, wait, you wanna restart Samurai? What about Nancy, Henry, and Denny? We’re just gonna replace em?!”

Johnny sighed again. Last time he asked Kerry to do this, he played his cards close to his chest and failed miserably. If he really wanted this to work out, he needed to open up.

_“And yet… you don’t seem to have my living guts.”_

_V chuckled, rather weakly. The Relic was taking its toll on him, but he still found the energy to smile._

_“It’s too bad we didn’t talk like this earlier. Woulda made things easier. ”_

_Johnny smirked._

_“Never found the right moment.”_

Johnny shook his head. Dammit, not now. He’d have plenty of time to reminisce later. Right now, he needed to get Kerry to see things from his point of view. Samurai was Johnny’s life. He didn’t want it to die yet.

“Of course I don’t wanna replace em, Kerry! It’s just… I don’t want Samurai to die out. It’s what’s kept me going all these years. The thought of going solo, after everything that’s happened…it...scares me more than I want to admit.”

Kerry sighed. “You think I wanted this either, Johnny? Samurai was part of me, too.”

He sat up. “Are you really sure you wanna do this?”

Johnny started to smile again. “Yeah. Just one gig, Kerry. We’ll see how it goes. If it goes well, then great! If not, well, at least we tried.”

Kerry shook his head, chuckling 

“How I get roped into your bullshit every time, Silverhand, I have no idea. Don’t go celebrating just yet, though. We’ll need some preem talent if we’re gonna do this. You got anyone in mind?”

“Not yet.” Johnny replied back. “To be honest, this was a spur of the moment kinda thing, but I’ll find a way, don’t worry.”

“Alright, Johnny, take care of yourself. Call me back when you’ve ironed out the deets. In the meantime, I’m gonna get my guitar strings replaced.”

Johnny shook his head. “Still breaking those strings of yours, Kerry? Shame.”

“Oh fuck you Johnny. See ya around.”

Johnny hung up. He chuckled. This...this was a good first step. Johnny was starting to remember things more clearly. He’d come out of his slump almost a year after Samurai had disbanded, but by the time he’d gotten out of it, Kerry had already started his own solo career. One that Johnny, selfish bastard he was, would always pull Kerry out of. No more. He was a changed man, now, and he was gonna do things the right way. The proper way.

At that moment, Rogue came around to see him.

“So, Johnny, how’d it go. He yell at you?”

Johnny shook his head. “Nah. Kerry actually decided to hear me out, funnily enough. Only problem now is to find a drummer, keyboardist, and bass player to replace the ones that left the band.” Johnny stretched his back. Damn, he felt good. Today was shaping up to be a good day. “I’ll figure something out. In the meantime, you wanna walk with me?”

He could see the faint tinge of red on Rogue’s cheeks again. Heh. Johnny had almost forgotten that Rogue was pretty much a teenager when she’d rolled into Night City, hellbent on making a name for herself as a Solo. 

Johnny’s smile suddenly soured. He began to remember more clearly what happened between him and Rogue. 

They’d begun their relationship a year after Samurai disbanded, and Johnny, being the asshole he was, didn’t appreciate it. She’d always asked him if they could visit the Drive In on date, which Johnny, being the blind, selfish bastard he was, ignored. Their relationship ended once Rogue found out about him cheating on her with three different women. Even then, after that massive fuckup on his part, Johnny refused to apologize. If Johnny had the chance to go back and beat some sense into his younger, stupid self, he’d have done so gladly.

“I just want some fresh air. I feel a walk around Night City might do me some good. Felt it would be better if I had a choom to walk with.”

Rogue shook her head. “A walk...in Night City? You do realize how many gangsters would happily carve up Johnny Silverhand, right?”

Johnny smirked. “What do you think I have this for, then?” taking out his Malorian Arms 3516 Power Pistol. “Besides, that’s why I was asking for a choom to accompany me. Doubt anyone would want to fuck around with Rogue Amendiares, Legendary Solo of Night City”

Rogue chuckled. “Ok, ok, Rockerboy. Don’t go all mushy on me, now. I’m grabbing my jacket.”


	4. The Corpo's Memories

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Viraj goes through quite the experience, none of it good.

**January 7th, 2013**

Five year old Viraj Matthai ran up to the house in Charter Hill. Today had been a great day! He’d made some new friends, he’d scored the highest grade on the surprise quiz in class, and, best of all, his new VR game would be arriving by mail today. Masho had ordered it on his birthday, it was bound to come by today! The door opened up, and his mother, Rekha Matthai, stepped out to greet him. Viraj ran to his mother, giving her a hug.

“Hello, mama.” Viraj said, excitement present in his tone.   
“Hello,  _ bheta _ , how was your day?”

Viraj smiled. “It was great, mama! I beat everyone in the surprise quiz in class! I bet they’re all super jealous of me!”

Rekha raised an eyebrow at her son. “And that thing we talked about?”

Viraj nodded. “Yeah, mama, I made new friends!” At this, he frowned. “Mama, what’s a...choomba?”

Rekha laughed. “It’s slang for buddy, Viraj. Strange, not many people use it in this area. Did you hear it from one of your new friends?”

Viraj nodded. “Should I call him that? It sounds much better than friend.”

Rekha smiled. “Of course, bheta. Just be sure not to say it in front of your teacher. I have a feeling she wouldn’t approve. Come inside, you must be hungry.” 

Rekha went inside the house, Viraj trailed close behind her. His smile dipped when he found out what his mom had set up. “Fish! Mama, you know I hate fish! It’s so...stinky.”

Rekha pinched her son’s cheeks. “Too bad. You either eat it, or you go hungry.” Viraj grumbled, but he took the fish and rice and began to eat. Just then, his uncle, Mohun Matthai came into the dining room, the Arasaka pin still shining all these years later on his designer suit. The trademark Matthai grey hair was prominent on his scalp. In the Matthai family, it was an unfortunate fact that, due to either stress or genetics or a mixture of both, all the men of the family had their hair usually turning grey by the time they hit their teens.

“And there’s V!” Mohun grabbed ahold of Viraj playfully, rubbing his head and ruining Viraj’s self proclaimed “ultimate hair style”.

“Ah, Masho! Quit it! Stop!” Viraj protested, but his Masho didn’t budge. After he had his fun, Masho let go of Viraj. His smile suddenly dipped, morphing into a frown. “Didi, I have to talk to you, can we go to the study?”

Rekha nodded, pursing her lips.

**A few hours later**

Viraj heard the doorbell ring. He jumped up from his study table. That must mean his new game was here! He raced to the door. Once he opened it, he saw the delivery man standing outside. “Package for a Viraj Matthai?” he asked.

Viraj beamed. “Yep, that’s me!” The delivery man shook his head, smiling. “Here you go, kid!” He gave Viraj the package. Viraj put it down. He rushed to tell Masho the good news. “Masho, the game’s here!” he shouted, heading to his uncle’s study.

No one was there.

Viraj frowned. That was odd. He checked the window.

Oh. Looked like he was going back to work. Mohun was adjusting his suit, a ritual he always performed before he got onto any vehicle.

Suddenly, images started to dance in Viraj’s head. Painful, lucid. He screamed.

_ A vicious explosion tore through the driveway. A woman, looking extremely similar to his mother, screamed, before a shot tore through her head. _

Viraj could barely think. His brain felt like it was on fire. He could vaguely hear himself screaming at his uncle about a...bomb?

_ Never forget, you owe your life to me. Now pull the trigger. _

_ Nice work, Agent V. I knew I could count on you to see this through to the end. _

_ Frankfurt was a disaster... _

_ The world is going to tear us apart when the word gets out _

_ This isn’t a request, V _

_ Un Pacto con el diablo. Been saying it all along. You sold your soul to those Arasaka fuckers. _

Viraj fell down, vomiting. The pain was too much. Through a painful haze, he saw a...gun? A gun in his...hand? Wait, the delivery man...what was a doing? He saw the man grab his mother, pulling out a pistol, pointing it at his mother’s head.

“Stay back, Matthai, or this bitch gets it!”

Viraj suddenly felt a foreign emotion grab him. Ugly and overpowering all his other senses.

Complete

Utter

**H A T R E D**

_ All these years, I’ve thought about what I wanted to say to you, after you murdered my family and tried to murder me with them. But...now that you’re lying here, bleeding in front of me, I realize something. I don’t need to say a damn thing. All I need...is for you to die. _

_ Alt, don’t do this to me! _

_ YOU’RE THE ONE THAT GOT US INTO THIS MESS! _

_ I saw corps strip farmers of water, and eventually of land. Saw them transform Night City into a machine fueled by people’s crushed spirits, broken dreams, and empty pockets. Corps’ve long controlled our lives, taken lots, and now they’re after our souls! _

**_BASTARD SMASHER!_ **

A shot rang out. The assassin jerked his head, a hole suddenly appearing right in the center of his forehead. Mohun turned around, and the sight that greeted him would haunt him for a long time.

His nephew was standing by the entrance, an oversized pistol in his hands. An ugly snarl decorated his face, covered in blood. Viraj’s eyes rolled upwards, and he lost consciousness.

_ Ay, hermano, your new life? It begins now. _

_ Dexter Deshawn’s got a job for us! _

_ Shot of vodka on the rocks, lime juice, ginger beer...oh, and most importantly - a splash of love _

_ Fucking major leagues! Happy now, Jackie! _

_ Jackie, don’t close your eyes! _

_ See you in the major leagues, Jack _

_ So this fucking terrorist wants to wipe me and take my place, take my body… _

_ And then he died...and I thought I was gonna die….with him, in my sleep _

_ Put some fucking iron in your mouth and pull the trigger! _

_ I just want someone to know that I was there, that I mattered. _

_ Feels like it happened a century ago. At another time, in another place. Jackie saved my life. _

_ Thank you, for being there for me. _

_ V, you don’t know how much I want that to be true. _

_ Seeing as how I’m doomed to die, we stick to the plan I gave you - I leave, you stay. Keys to my body are yours. _

_ There are no options, you two - faced sack of shit! I’m out, you’re in! That’s the deal! _

_ Listen, Johnny. You’re a dickhead, in a big way, and sure, there are plenty of others out there that’re more deserving of life, but even so, I’d never wish you dead. _

_ Just promise me one thing, asshole. _

_ You won’t forget me. _


	5. Never Fade Away (Part I)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For Johnny, life was good. He and Rogue never split up, Samurai was still going strong, and Johnny was finding himself able to ignore the atrocities of Arasaka. At least, until Alt was kidnapped. Now, Johnny's rage has reignited, and he'll make sure that this time, Alt's physical body doesn't die.

**April 15th, 2013**

Johnny Silverhand finished the song on a high note, ending with one of his trademark guitar solos. The crowd was going wild, and Johnny couldn’t help but smile. “Thank you all, thank you all very much!”

“YOU’RE BREATHTAKING!” a fan shouted. Johnny laughed.

“No, you’re breathtaking!” he shouted back, the crowd continuing to cheer him on. “You’re all breathtaking! I love you all! See ya next time!”

Johnny and Kerry were laughing as they went to their respective dressing rooms. “Oh man, haven’t had a crowd that frenzied in years!” Johnny and Kerry sat down on the steps. Kerry took out a cigarette. Johnny looked at him disapprovingly

“Those things’ll kill you.”

Kerry looked back, unimpressed. “Look who’s talking.” he muttered grumpily.

Johnny shook his head. “Take it from the guy who quit, you’ll feel much better when you’re no longer huffing those down.” First thing Johnny had done once he started Samurai back up again was throwing the boosters and cigs in the dumpster. To his surprise, it hadn’t even been that hard to conquer the addiction to begin with. Johnny thought that his younger body might’ve been too addicted to that shit to truly let go, but oh well. Maybe it was more of a memory thing.

_ I’m not getting lung cancer or liver failure just to please you and your previous life’s addictions, Johnny. _

Johnny shook his head. A month after he had called Kerry, the visions and memories he had of V tempered down. He wouldn’t randomly flash back or remember bits from a time when he was an engram stuck in the body of a dying 23 year old Corporate Solo. However, after January, the memories started to flare back up again. Johnny hadn’t told anyone about what happened to him in 2077, not even Rogue.

A minute later, he heard his phone ring. He opened it. The face of Alt Cunningham stared back.

“Hey, Johnny. I need to talk for a second, could you come here?”

Johnny nodded. He and Alt had met at a random gig a year ago, like before. Difference was, this time Johnny wasn’t looking for a lay to get over his anger at the fact that Rogue had broken up with him. He and Rogue were still going steady all these years later, and Alt had become quick friends with both Rogue and Johnny.

As Johnny came outside, he saw Alt standing by the back entrance of the hall he and Kerry had just played in. “Good to see ya, Alt. How’ve you been?” Johnny was more than a little concerned. After his and Rogue’s first date, he’d put down every major event, every little date that he could remember that was important to him in a small diary as an insurance measure, should he start to forget things. Today was the date Alt would be kidnapped by Arasaka, forced to work on the Soulkiller Project.

A day later, her physical body would die, killed because Johnny Silverhand unplugged her from Soulkiller as she was just starting to get back into her body from Cyberspace.

Alt shook her head. “Been better, Johnny. Fact of the matter is, I’ll have to leave Night City soon, at least for a little while. I just wanted to drop in and say my goodbyes”

Johnny nodded in understanding. “If you think it’s for the best, then I won’t stop ya. You sure you don’t need Rogue’s help? She’s been making quite the reputation for herself lately.”

Alt nodded. “Yep. I can handle this, Johnny. I just need to hide for a little bit.” She walked up and gave Johnny a quick hug before turning away. “Give Rogue my regards.” she started to head towards the parking lot

Suddenly, thugs started to surround the two. Johnny froze.

_ Blinding pain tore through Johnny, as his stomach was pieced by two wrist blades that had come from a bastard that blindsided him, chromed to the absolute gills. _

_ “JOHNNY!” _

_ “Alt, c’mon, don’t do this!” _

Johnny’s vision went red.

He threw Alt down and opened fire with his Malorian, surprising the thugs. Five of them fell to the ground immediately afterwards, dead. Johnny heard a  _ schnik _ of a blade. 

Suddenly, he dodged the blades that had been sent to his stomach, his reaction as quick as lightning. He grabbed the right arm of the assassin that had just tried to kill him, and using the assassin's momentum, smashed his face onto a nearby dumpster

Johnny was startled. He’d had good reflexes before, but this was something else!

_ “Behind you!” He shouted, trying to get the kids attention, almost too late to warn him.  _

_ V didn’t need the warning. He sidestepped the Maelstrom grunt’s Mantis Blades and grabbed ahold of the grunt’s arm. As fast as he had dodged, he used the grunt’s momentum to smash his face against a wall. V then activated a glowing red Mantis Blade on his left arm, a gift unceremoniously taken from Oda (Hey, at least V was leaving him alive. This was the least Oda could give him), before driving it into the grunt’s neck. _

Unfortunately for Johnny, this one second where he was distracted was all the assassin needed. He spun-kicked at Johnny’s legs, tripping him. As Johnny fell, the assassin descended on him. His mantis blades were gone, but his fists were still chrome, and Johnny could barely defend himself against the assault. He kicked the bastard away with his right foot, but as he was trying to get up, the assassin picked something up, and broke it on Johnny’s head.

Johnny lost consciousness.

**Midnight, at Atlantis**

Rogue sighed. She had everything ready for a client that was supposed to be coming today, and it looked like they had bailed. She had pushed away her date with Johnny for this.

“I don’t think they’re gonna show, Rogue.” Santiago stated, boredom clearly present in his tone.

Rogue shook her head. “Just...five more minutes.” She opened the bottle before her and took a swig. “Fucking asshole. Goes through all the hoops and hires us, and then decides to not show up at the last minute. I swear, if he shows up now, I am tripling our goddamn fee.”

Suddenly the door burst open. Rogue perked up, ready to tear apart the fucker that had her sitting there for over 15 minutes, only to be unpleasantly surprised by a Johnny Silverhand who had a clutter of visible bruises on his face. He was breathing heavily, almost as if he had run a marathon trying to get from the entrance of Atlantis to here.

“Johnny, what the fuck!” She took a closer look at her input, concerned. “You’re hurt, what the hell happened?”

Johnny was struggling to breath. “They took her, Rogue, they fuckin took her.”

Rogue felt a sense of foreboding hit her. “Who, Johnny? Who’re you talking about?”

Johnny looked up at her, rage clear in his eyes.

“Alt. Arasaka’s got their hands on Alt.”

Rogue’s eyes widened. “Oh fuck.” she whispered. She peeked at the bottle she had just opened.

Maybe she could use another swig.

Johnny sat down on the couch with some difficulty. As Rogue tried to bring herself together after the nasty shock that had just occurred, she turned to Johnny. “Start from the beginning, what happened?”

Johnny took the bottle from the table, considering whether or not to break his sobriety streak, before setting it back down. Rogue reached underneath the table and fished out a bottle of lemonade.

_ “You don’t smoke, you don’t drink, you don’t boost. Of all the gonks I had to get stuck with, why did I have to get stuck with one that doesn’t even know how to have fun?” _

_ V, lying down rather comfortably on his bed, his legs folded into a “4” position, looked away from his book.  _ _ The Count of Monte Cristo _ _ was emblazoned on the faded cover. “You and I have got very different ideas on what ‘fun’ is, Johnny.” _

_ Johnny scowled. “Still having a hard time believing that you keep choosing to go with lemonade over a good, old fashioned Tequila” _

Johnny shook his head. Damn flashbacks, he didn’t need them! Not now! Not after they’d been responsible for Alt getting taken in the first place!

“It was after a gig. Alt said she was gonna leave Night City, said that she wanted to drop by and say her farewells before leaving. It sounded like she was in real trouble”. Johnny took a swig of lemonade, trying to get rid of the thirst that he had suddenly started to notice. “Then some gangers come through. There was a fight. Some fucker with top of the line chrome almost blindsided me. I tried to fight him off, but he got the best of me. Last thing I remember before blackin out was them taking Alt in a van.”

Rogue took Johnny’s metal hand, entwining it with hers. “We’ll get her back, Johnny. She’s my choom, too, remember?”

Suddenly, a new voice popped out.

“Mr. Silverhand.” it stated. “You’re coming with us.”

Johnny’s fists clenched. Arasaka. Of course they had tracked him down.

“Lemme guess, gonna take me to Alt?”

The Corpo Rat shook his head. “That’s not your concern.”

Johnny shrugged. “Sure, sure.”, he replied, grabbing the tequila bottle…

And smashing it onto the agent’s head.

Rogue and Santiago took care of the other agent that had entered the room, gunning him down. The trio took out their weapons.

“Got a plan, Johnny?”, Rogue asked. Johnny turned to her, incredulous.

“Me? You’re usually the one with the plan, Rogue. I’m the kinda guy that would just throw someone into water just to see if they float.”

Rogue chuckled. “Fair enough. We can talk about all this after we fight our way out of here.”

**An Hour Later**

Rogue, Johnny, Santiago, and Thompson stopped beneath an underpass, their pursuers either dead or deciding to cut their losses.

“Alright, so, who we gotta pull outta Arasaka? Sounds like you two know her pretty well.” Santiago asked. 

Rogue turned to him. “A choom of ours, name’s Alt Cunningham. Netrunner from ITS.” Rogue crossed her arms. “Dammit, if Arasaka’s gotten their mitts all over her and her work, who knows what they’ll do.”

Johnny shook his head. If they were gonna save Alt, they had to know everything, or else her physical body would die and she would be trapped in Cyberspace once more. Thinking quickly, Johnny was able to embellish how he got the truth.

“It’s worse than you think. Before I came to Atlantis, I dropped by Alt’s apartment to see if I could find anything that could help us. What I found was...troubling, to say the least. Apparently, Alt was working on something big, a Free Roaming Black Program that would find a way to digitally store the memories of those it was used on. Alt believed that it could be used to electronically preserve the intellects of dying people.”

Rogue turned to Johnny, confused. “Ok, so… why is this so-.” Rogue’s face went pale. “Oh my god, are you saying…”

Johnny leaned on his Porsche, wishing for the first time in years that he had a cigarette in hand. “That’s exactly what I’m saying. If Arasaka, or any other giant corp can create, or hell, just flat out use Alt’s own version of this program, the corps can be in control of hundreds, maybe even thousands of the greatest minds of our time. All of them, under a digital lock and key, exploited for power and unable to fight back, and that’s just the best scenario.”

Johnny turned to the rest of the group. “Worst case, how easy would it be for a corp to modify the engrams that these people would be preserved on? How easy would it be for them to modify your memories, destroy your very identity?”

Santiago looked deeply unsettled. Thompson looked like he wanted to throw up, and Rogue looked absolutely pissed.

Thomson shook his head, trying to dispel the horrors he had just heard. “The tower. Musta taken her there.”

Rogue turned to the group. “How you wanna play this? Any of you gonks got a plan?”

“Yep. Distract’em, make some noise.” Thomson replied.

Johnny nodded. “Set up right under Arasaka’s windows and crank it loud. Blast the panes out.”

At this, Johnny took out his aviators, putting them on. “It’ll be a gig to remember.”


	6. Never Fade Away (Part II)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Johnny breaks into Arasaka HQ to rescue Alt. He does that, and receives a nasty shock in the process

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: I usually don’t put these things on this site, but here goes. I know some of my readers have been confused on what the timeline is, and how V’s age is all outta wack. I feel that the blame lies on me, because I never bothered trying to explain it better.
> 
> V, by all accounts, SHOULD NOT EXIST. In the actual timeline, V was born in 2054. He went through completely different experiences than the V in this story. I wanted to post a chapter later on to fully explain all the differences, and how V was somehow able to be born in 2008 the day Johnny came back, but I realized a lot of you guys are really confused, and I just wanted to clear it up. With that said, enjoy the chapter! I hope you all stick with the story!

**April 16th, 2013**

Johnny Silverhand chambered the round in his Malorian. He felt a small amount of guilt twinging in his chest at the thought of his fans getting the absolute shit kicked out of them, especially since he had dropped a psychoactive agent to give him and his team the window of opportunity to get inside Arasaka HQ. At least they would be let off any major charges, considering that they had been forcibly drugged. Thompson turned on his eye cam.

“You recordin’ this whole thing?” Johnny asked, though he already knew the answer.

“Uh-huh, why? Wanna say a few words to the folks at home?” Thompson replied.

Johnny shook his head. “Do what you gotta do, just don’t get in our way.”

Rogue turned to Johnny “Thompson, know him well?” she asked, distrustful of their new member.

“No, why’s it matter?”

Rogue scoffed. “Don’t like the guy, don’t trust ‘im, and Medias are bad luck, which is the last thing we need if we’re gonna rescue Alt.”

“He might prove useful, Rogue. Don’t dismiss him right off the bat.”

“That’s not the point, Johnny! What if someone finds a tape later, a tape of us breaking into Arasaka Tower?”

Johnny smiled, trying to reassure both himself and his output. “It’ll be fine. We’re all walking out of this in one piece.”

The elevator doors opened. “C’mon, we don’t have much time.” Thompson stated, walking out of the elevator.

Arasaka Counterintel Agents chose that moment to walk out of the hall.

“You heard, right? Director’s own nephe-” they stopped, noticing the group in front of them. “WE’RE BEING ATTACKED!” they shouted, pulling out their weapons..

Johnny and his friends were faster.

“Mainframe, we gotta find the mainframe.” Johnny mumbled, 

“Focus, Johnny!” Rogue replied, taking cover behind a few crates..

“Ready or not, here they come!” Santiago shouted, hefting his assault rifle. A new group of Counterintel Agents came inside. “Shoot! Shoot!” their leader shouted, trying to flatline the intruders. A hole blew through his forehead immediately after his order was given, courtesy of Johnny’s Malorian. The three others with the leader were flatlined a second later, courtesy of Rogue and Santiago.

As Johnny and co. began to run towards the mainframe, a heavy door was put in their way. Johnny spotted some scrap components by a crate. Against his will, he found himself picking it up.

“Fuck, locked the doors. What now?” Rogue asked the team, 

Thomson started walking towards the doors “Gimme a sec, I’ll get it open. Cover me.”

Johnny nodded in confirmation. He headed towards one of the doors, keeping a lookout. As Thompson neared the locked doors, Santiago called out to his team what he saw. “Get ready, got four headed our way.”

Seven Counterintel Agents ran into the room, three of them immediately getting put down by the hail of bullets sent their way, thanks to Johnny, Rogue, and Santiago. The rest of the agents took cover, popping in and out to fire at the team. Unfortunately, against the legends of Night City, the group didn’t last long, and quickly fell down, dead. Thompson, who at that point, had been hiding behind a crate the whole time, walked out. He resumed his work on the locked door. “Five seconds, and we’re in. Ready?”. With that, Thompson broke through the door’s security.

“Nice work, Media.” Rogue commented.

Thompson shrugged non committedly. “Thank me when we get out of this alive.” he muttered.

The team blasted their way through the various rooms that stood in their way between them and Alt, various Counterintel Agents and even two automated turrets not able to stop them. They neared another door, one much heavier than the last one Thompson had unlocked. 

“Fuckin door’s armored so thick, we could use a tank. Solutions, anyone?” Rogue asked. Johnny moved to the door, trying to open it with his mechanical arm. No luck.

“Son of a bitch!” Johnny shouted, frustrated at his failure. Thompson pushed Johnny’s shoulder to grab his attention. He showed Johnny a small block of C4, before putting it on the door. “Try this” he said, turning away and getting to cover.

“Ah, now I see why we bought him along.” Santiago said, impressed. Johnny armed the explosives, then ran behind some cover. Last thing he needed in this rescue mission was shrapnel embedded in his body. “Three, two, one…”. The door exploded, the explosives doing their job just fine.

“Perfect.” Santiago commented. He went to the room Alt was in.

He burst through, aiming his Malorian at the suited man next to Alt. “We’re too late” Santiago commented, seeing Alt hooked onto something on the chair. The suit turned to Johnny. 

“I would advise you not to disturb her.” he said. Rogue pointed her pistol at the man, rage clear in her features. “What did you do to Alt?!” she shouted.

The man turned to Alt, something akin to pride and...fear(?) defined on his face. “I have put her to work on the project of a lifetime. Soulkiller. A fitting name, isn’t i-” That was as far as he got before Rogue blew his head off with her pistol. “Get out of our way.” she snarled, before heading to Alt. Just as she was going to unplug Alt, Johnny dragged her back.

“Johnny, what the fuck! We gotta get her outta there” she exclaimed. Johnny, in return, pointed to Alt. “It’s too late. She’s already been plugged into Soulkiller. We unplug her now, she’ll die. We keep her there, maybe she’ll be able to come back. She wrote the damn thing, after all. If anyone could find a way out of it, it’s her.”

A row of TVs next to Johnny suddenly sparked to life, each screen showing a character.

T H A N K S J O H N N Y

Johnny chuckled, shaking his head in disbelief. “I fuckin knew it. How long do you need to get back, Alt?”

5 M I N U T E S

Just then, a swarm of Counterintel Agents, along with a man in a red suit came down to the floor in an elevator. Johnny felt something was familiar about the man, but he shook it off. He had to protect Alt.

“Men, secure the Netrunner and eliminate the intruders!” the man shouted to his Agents. Johnny and his team immediately felt the difference from those they had fought previously to these guys. Taking cover, lobbing grenades, covering each other. Whoever this group was, they were used to working together. Their leader was at the forefront, a man with grey hair and tan features, firing a Custom Liberty Power Pistol. Johnny turned to his team.

“Close your eyes. When I give the signal, open em, and zero the bastards.”, and with that, Johnny got out the scrap he picked up earlier, and started tinkering with it.

_ “Mind telling me how we’re getting outta this one, kid?” he asked V. They were being fired at by a group of Scavs, who were refusing to let their trigger finger go on their assault rifles. Pinned down, V could barely pop up before the Scavs would start blasting away at his cover.  _

_ V snarled. He had always hated Scavs the most out of all the other gangs in Night City, this was just further cementing that opinion. He took out some scrap and components that he had gotten from disassembling the various guns of his former enemies. He started to twist and turn his hands, fashioning a small block of metal. V flicked on a switch that he’d managed to insert on this tiny scrap abomination, before throwing it over his head. A deafening  _ **_BANG_ ** _ echoed throughout the room, blinding the Scavs. _

_ ‘Flashbang’, thought Johnny, before V viciously gunned down the Scavs that had pinned him a minute ago. _

As soon as that memory finished playing, Johnny looked at his hand. In his palm sat a small block of metal, just as ugly looking as the one in his vision. Johnny flicked on a switch that had somehow been inserted into it, before chucking it at the Agents. “GRENADE!” their leader shouted, they all hunkered down. A deafening  **_BANG_ ** echoed throughout the room, blinding the Agents. 

That was when Johnny struck. “NOW!” Johnny shouted. Santiago and Rogue opened their eyes, before opening fire at the blinded Agents.

He sprinted towards the leader. He froze. Here, he could see the man’s face more clearly. Tan skin, red eyes, grey hair, wearing a Arasaka Neomilitarism Styled Suit.

It shouldn’t have been possible, yet he was standing in front of him.

_ Gotta get outta here, understand? And I’ll kill anyone who gets in my way _

_ Stick some iron in your mouth and pull the trigger! _

_ I’ve processed some shit, changed my mind, don’t want ya dead anymore. _

_ Wanted me dead, said so yourself _

_ Made it pretty clear since that I changed my mind, want you to live now. _

_ Always been a corpocog, a replaceable part. Once ‘Saka booted you out, stripped you of perks, best you could hope for was to be a scav exterminator. _

_ You’re a dick, you know _

_ And you’re a cunt, maybe we’ll fit together after all. _

_ Why you givin’ me these? _

_ Tags belonged to a man who sacrificed his life for mine in Mexico. Wanna be clear, I will do you no wrong. When the time comes, it’ll be my life for yours. I’ll agree to get wiped. Tags are proof of my promise. _

_ I...I’d do the same for you. _

_ My ride. Hop in, I’ll even let ya drive. _

_ What’d you expect? Headstone, flag and flowers? _

_ Nah I...I dunno. A marker? Something, anything _

_ We’ll figure something out. Better now? _

_ A bit, but let’s say it was my real grave - what would you write? “Here lies Johnny Silverhand-” _

_ The Guy Who Saved My Life _

_ V, you don’t know how much I want that to be true. _

“V?” Johnny asked, his voice hoarse. The man’s eyes widened, before he roared in rage, trying to kill the Rockerboy. He aimed his gun at Johnny, only to find the Rockerboy grab the barrel of his pistol and point it away from him. He struck the leader with a knifehand strike to the throat, forcing him on his knees. Johnny then took out his Malorian and smashed the butt of the gun on the man’s head. The man lost consciousness. His Agents, enraged at their leaders defeat, lost their cool and aimed at Johnny. Johnny threw himself down, allowing his team to fire at the agents, ending the lives of the team the man had led.

Johnny took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. Now that his adrenaline was fading out, he could see that this man wasn’t V at all. The man was too old, probably twice that of V’s age. His hairstyle wasn’t V’s spiked fade. He wasn’t as powerfully built, either. Johnny turned to Thompson.“Who’s this asshole?” he asked Thompson. Thompson shrugged. “Why are you so interested, aren’t you gonna put a bullet in him?”

Johnny shook his head. “That depends on what ya say. Know anything about this guy?”

Thompson rubbed his chin, deep in thought. “I think I do. Director of Arasaka Counterintelligence. He had a brief segment on the news. His family was attacked in Charter Hill. Made the news a little bit because his nephew, surprisingly enough, was the one to put down the assassin. A five year old, getting a perfect headshot on some gonk 50 ft away? Think the suit in front of us was called….hmm...Mohun Matthai?”

_ As V looked to the sea in Pacifica, leaning on the railings of the Hotel Pistis Sophia, he turned to Johnny. _

_ “If things get bad, if I somehow flatline in the next attack, my real name, my full name...it’s Viraj. Viraj Matthai. Wanted ya to know. Might not get another chance” _

_ Johnny chuckled. “Viraj, huh. Never expected that. I think it suits you just fine.” _

Mohun Matthai?! V’s dad?! But, according to V’s memories, Mohun Matthai should be hiding in India in 2013! What the hell was going on?!

Johnny put the man against the railing. “I gotta ask this guy a few things.”, trying his best to keep calm.

Alt was awake now, staring blearily at her friends, before smiling. “I think I gotta...take a nap…” and with that, she fell asleep. As Johnny’s team descended to their exit, Rogue turned to Johnny. “Well, we have Alt. What are you gonna do with this guy? Why’s he so important?”

Johnny turned to his output. “I’m sorry, but this guy’s important to me for a reason. I gotta ask him some questions. I’ll explain later.” With that, he pecked Rogue’s cheek, before grabbing Mohun Matthai and taking him to his Porsche. He opened the trunk, before dumping the man inside. Johnny took a deep breath once he was behind the wheel. He knew that whatever Mohun was gonna spill, it wasn’t gonna be anything good.

**January 14th, 2013**

Viraj looked around, his eyes trying to adjust to the darkness. Out of the corner of his eyes, he could see a strange man. He was dressed in an armored formal wear the color of blood. His arms were prosthetic, the color of black and red. He was wearing red tinted polarized sunglasses. The man kept fading out, almost as if he was some kind of hologram. The man turned to Viraj, a snarl on his face. He walked to Viraj and knelt down. Viraj was taken aback by how  _ similar _ this man appeared to his Masho. The only difference was that his grey hair was styled into a spiked fade.

“Gotta get outta here, understand? Gotta zero that bastard that tried to take out our family” he growled to the child. He stood up.

“And I’ll kill anyone who gets in my way.”

Viraj blacked out, the last thing he remembered being that his own arm started to head towards the various tubes that decorated his body.


End file.
